A very satisfied machine shop just outside of Nashville has literally reinvented its business practices by using the Misumi CAD Configurator for a growing number of its mechanical components needs. Misumi USA, Inc. has offered its configurable components for factory automation and assembly operations to many companies over the years, saving them time and money in the process. The company’s unique CAD Configurator, which allows a machine designer to configure parts online, download native CAD files to confirm the fit or functionality, then place an order for even just one part, with never a tooling charge or minimum order, saves time and money in the design, procurement and production cycles, plus it maximizes the efficiency of the customer’s machine shop, allowing it to be better utilized for more complex parts.
“The Misumi model, to be very direct, has changed the way we do business here,” states Turner Machine’s president, Jeff Turner. “Their ability to provide configured components that are essentially ‘off the shelf’ items and would normally be considered custom tooling by our customers has proven itself through decreased costs and lead times. These savings translate directly to our customers, as well our own bottom line. Plus, the efficiencies of this model have dramatically improved our own design, purchasing, and production methods.”
Jeff Turner founded Turner Machine, located in Smyrna, TN, in 1995 to better serve the local business need for a variety of machine shop services and has since grown into a full-service automation house with customers nationwide. Currently, over 30 full-time employees occupy its 17,000 sq ft facility, where all the design work, manufacturing, and assembly is done for the company’s growing lines of assembly machines, automated dispensing equipment, automated welding and tooling, and much more. A common requirement for this multifaceted shop is the recurrent need for precision mechanical and motion control components in low volumes and very specific accuracies, to meet the demands of its customers.
Several years ago, Turner’s engineering department received a Misumi catalog on CD. Today, the company regularly uses the Misumi website for a wide variety of component needs, usually in low quantity and in tight tolerances.
Ordering Components via the Web
“Our engineering department is a diverse group of individuals with experiences in many industrial disciplines. Utilizing SolidWorks 2008 and AutoCAD, we use both top-down and bottom-up design methodologies to create very unique and successful designs for our customers,” explains Brian Johns, Turner’s engineering manager. “We began using Misumi in 2003 on a joining (staking) machine we were producing for the metal stamping industry. A variety of posts, supports, bushings, bearings, and shaft were required. Today, Turner Machine engineers use the Misumi website every day, incorporating all types of configurable components, including those mentioned plus locating pins, timing pulleys and more into our automated machine designs.”
Turner currently purchases components from over 75% of the Misumi product families of linear motion, rotary motion, mechanical and machine hardware products in the metric and inch catalogs, using them in a variety of end products produced at this diverse shop, including jigs, fixtures, assembly & check cells, hydraulic presses, leak testers, roll forming machinery, robotics, vision systems, dispensing devices and other application-specific builds.
A typical project at Turner, if such a term can be used, usually involves a relatively short lead time, often just 12-14 weeks. During that span, the entire cycle must be accomplished, according to Randy Gough, operations manager:
“Complete project management, mechanical design engineering, control engineering, procurement, machining, fabrication, tooling, assembly and test are all put on the line, for nearly every job we do. Our design engineers are able to use the Misumi catalog and its wide-range offerings of product lines to exceed our customers’ expectations for quality, function, and reliable performance, while simultaneously meeting their delivery schedules.”
Dan Westerdale, mechanical engineer at Turner, echoes this thought.
“We really find that the Misumi model and all their services are very easy to use, whether through the catalog, website, or direct sales personnel. We find consistently good customer service practices in place. They always have application ideas for their products and this helps us serve our customers much better, too.” Westerdale also notes the CAD Configurator is a “must” in today’s market, given that the need to “drag and drop” components into design and timeline criteria has never been greater. The Turner purchasing department works directly with Misumi representatives, either in the field or from the Misumi customer service department, to gather accurate cost and delivery data.
“As users of SolidWorks 2008, the ability to download native files is a significant time saver, as the translation process is bypassed each time a new product is incorporated into one of our machines,” he says, also relating how the Misumi navigation protocol in its catalog and online are very straightforward and helpful, with an emphasis on easy use.
How the System Works
Westerdale describes how a typical part is obtained from the Misumi CAD Configurator.
“We usually have some rough idea of what we need, be it a shaft, bracket, support, bearing, pulley or even just a machine rest. We can quickly search the Misumi categories of product families, find what we need, then order it or go to the Configurator. Each configurable parameter of length, diameter, machined surface, or mounting hole can be quickly selected, then imaged in a compatible CAD format for uploading to our assembly. Once the right part is determined, it’s a few clicks to add the part to the order with full shipping info and price already shown, regardless of the complexity of the configured component we select.” He also notes the ability to revisit previous orders and reuse configured components from one machine on another build is a significant time saver and cost upside to the Turner engineering department.
“Our ability to purchase configurable components has really impacted Turner Machine in two key areas,” says company president Jeff Turner. “The first is mechanical design time, where an engineer would previously have spent an hour or two on a custom piece of tooling, by the time the part is modeled here in CAD and then part prints are created. Even on a machine build with just 10 Misumi components, the time savings alone on the CAD Configurator are significant. The second benefit to us is in machine shop savings. We keep all but the most customized components and structures out of the machine shop to allow our automation side to operate much more efficiently, freeing up machining time for our proprietary print work business.”
Ultimately, according to Turner, the cost savings to his company from the configurable components they buy from Misumi can be directly calculated on a per-piece basis. Since an average project at Turner might contain 10-100 unique Misumi part numbers, he multiplies the number of uses for each of those products by the one or two hours saved in engineering time alone and the result per machine or system build can be substantial. He also notes this savings allows his company to submit very competitive quotes to its customers. “Plus, there’s the quality of the Misumi parts, which is excellent and makes our machines just that much better in the end.”